Many of you know that while I'm no longer actively working towards a degree in Writing, I still love taking online workshops and getaway writing weekends to grow my knowledge in the craft.
The only problem? All those classes cost A LOT of money.
Some I'd pay 80-100 dollars for, others cost over 400!
But it was okay, right? All in the name of writing. This is my passion. This is what I want for my life. I want to get better and be published. I want to be a writer!
However, what if we could learn how to be writers without paying two weeks of disposable salary?
That's where the MOOC comes in.
MOOC stands for Massive Open Online Course. Wikipedia defines it further as, "an online course aimed at unlimited participation and open access via the web. In addition to traditional course materials such as filmed lectures, readings, and problem sets, many MOOCs provide interactive user forums to support community interactions between students, professors, and teaching assistants."
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massive_open_online_course
So, basically, a MOOC is a high-level class brought to you usually by an accredited facility, literally giving away info for free.
What could be better than that?
MOOCs were birthed into the world in 2008, but didn't become popular until 2012. This means they're still a pretty new concept in the world of learning.
If you're looking to take a writing MOOC (or a MOOC in any subject - because they exist for almost anything), here's a list of Pros and Cons.
PROs: 1. They're free.
2. You choose your level of participation. [Because you're not paying for it, you don't have to worry about making deadlines and submitting assignments or risk failing grades. There are no grades here. Simply self enrichment.]
3. You meet a wide variety of people in fields you're interested in. [Unlike a classroom, students are only limited in attending by whether or not they have internet access. That means you meet writers from all over the world that are interested in the same things you are. Great friendships ensue.]
CONs: 1. You must be at least moderately computer savvy.
2. You only get what you put in. [If you don't think you need to participate because it's free and you're not graded, then you probably won't learn very much. Sure, the instructor videos are helpful, but only by engaging in conversation and critique and submission with your fellow students will your writing truly grow.]
3. It's easy to get overwhelmed if you're not organized. [There's no enrollment cap so thousands of students sign up for MOOCs. That means, if you're not prepared, you can easily be overwhelmed by the 3,000 comments made on day one. Also, since there are so many people, it's likely you won't always be critiqued by the same amount of students for each story you submit. While you do receive variety in opinions with your critiquers, one story may get 700 comments, another may only get 3.]
If you think MOOCs sound intriguing, sign up! There are sites like NovoEd that contain hundreds of MOOCs on different subjects.
In fact, the whole reason I've made this post this week is because I'm enrolled in a MOOC put together by the University of Iowa (you know, the one with the really popular Iowa Writer's Workshop). It's called How Writers Write Fiction 2015 and may still be open for enrollment (?) since they're still in the Welcome Week of the course.
And good news for poets, too! The University of Iowa also puts on a How Writers Write Poetry MOOC occasionally. The 2015 one just ended, but they're looking into doing the next in 2016 or 2017.
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